Fitness has total body benefits
Exercise is a main pillar in chronic pain management for it’s well-known benefits, like increasing strength and range of motion, endurance and weight management, but physical fitness has other far-reaching benefits:
- improved organ health
- improved cellular health
- improved mental health
- improved cognitive functioning
- stress relief
- reduced insomnia
- improved overall mood
- stronger resistance to future disease and illness
- endorphin* release
* Endorphins are the feel good, uplifting, mood boosting hormones that can reduce stress, anxiety and depression.
Strength and Core Training
Benefits
- Increase in flexibility and range of motion
- Injury prevention
- Improved posture
Activities
- Yoga
- Pilates
- Tai Chi
- Target stretching
Benefits
- Increased muscle mass
- Improved stability
- Strengthens bones
- Helps improve chronic conditions
Activities
- Weights
- Squats
- Tae Kwondo
- Resistance training
- Push ups/sit ups
Aerobic Exercise
Recreational Activity
Benefits
- Builds endurance
- Increased oxygen uptake effciency
- Improved heart health
Activities
- Running
- Swimming
- Walking
- Cycling
- Zumba
- Karate
- Aerobic training machines
Benefits
- Lifts mood
- Improves self-esteem
- Relieves stress
Activities
- Canoeing
- Skiing
- Kayaking
- Skating
- Paddle Boarding
- Snow-shoeing
- Dancing
Multitask your fitness
Finding time for fitness can be difficult to balance with the rest of life’s responsibilities. Many household tasks and chores have surprising physical benefits.
Chore | Equivalent Exercise/Calories Burned |
---|---|
30 minutes of vacuuming | 15 minutes of kickboxing/187 calories |
Washing the car | 153 calories |
Rearranging your closet | 85 calories |
15 minutes of moving furniture | 100 calories |
30 minutes of indoor redecorating | 167 calories |
30 minutes of cleaning windows | 40 push-ups/167 calories |
60 minutes of sweeping or mopping | 240 calories |
15 minutes of scrubbing the tub | 30 jumping jacks/90 calories |
30 minutes of gardening | 40 minutes of biking on flat terrain/250 calories |
15 minutes of dish washing (every day for a week) | Swimming 2500 metres/175 calories |
60 minutes of cooking a meal | 150 calories |
60 minutes of doing laundry | 100 sit-ups/100 calories |